Electronic storage mechanisms have enabled accumulation of massive amounts of data. For instance, data that previously required volumes of books for recordation can now be stored electronically without expense of printing paper and with a fraction of physical space needed for storage of paper. Many users employ database systems or other systems for storage and organization of data.
To maintain data in a readily retrievable and understandable manner, the data can be arranged in a tabular format or can be represented as if in a tabular format. That is to say, the tabular data can be organized in rows and columns, wherein each row can be regarded as an entity described by properties that are contained in the columns of the row. Exceptions, which are rows that do not conform to the rules or generalizations that govern the properties of most other rows, can be present within the tabular data. These exceptions can be diagnosed as errors in the data collection process and corrected accordingly. The exceptions may also be diagnosed as real problems and action can be taken to correct and/or make use of the exceptional data instance.